Training Log Archive: iansmith

Hart House after chorus. I read Yard 2016, which is much easier to do on a stationary bike than running or on a real bike.

I was hoping to go longer, but because my right knee started hurting, I called it a day. Also, I commuted by bike, so I amusingly biked to a facility where I could sit in a room and ride a bike that doesn't travel anywhere.

3x10 bench press, 135 lbs
2x 3x10 kettlebell clean and press, 25 lbs
3x10 Romanian deadlift, 135 Lbs
3x10 (x2) bicep curl, 20 lbs
15 chest fly, 2x15 lbs

The bench press was surprisingly difficult.

I have decided for 2020 to not log my cycling commute; I have biked in to work a handful of times because Toronto's snowfall has been relatively low. My commute is short enough that it scarcely counts as physical activity, and while it has some benefits, it's not enough to bother tracking. Hopefully I will have more actual training this year, especially cycling.

Squash at Hart House with Katie and Petr. This was my first time playing with Petr, and I was impressed with his athleticism. His serve is erratic - and he drops the ball from near his waist when serving instead of throwing it up tennis-style like me. I think my serve gives preferable angles.

We rotated partners, but I probably played 12 games in total. I won them all, though some got close. Petr had a lot of trouble with my serve, and the games with Katie were much closer.

After squash, I hopped on the upright stationary bike for an hour. I chose the light hills workout at a difficulty setting of 12 (out of 25), and I kept a cadence of 90-110. As usual, I'm not sure I believe the distance values - they're a handy way to track effort, but probably don't translate to the real world because wind resistance, road friction, and so on.

Marathon squash session with Katie. We played 15 games over 90 minutes; I won 13. Losing scores were (Ian in parentheses):

11 6 9(I), 2 7 4, 7 6 8, 8 4 4, 4 9 6 (I).

We played a total of 262 points, not including a handful of faults and lets. Our amortized cost is 20s per point, including transitions to recover the ball. We also took quick water breaks every third game. A fun but challenging session.

Katie and I each have shots we have named after ourselves; Katie's shot is a return where you first hit a side wall before hitting the front wall, and the ball also hits a side wall after. The result is that the bounce is very far forward and quite weak. It takes a lot of speed to return it if you're playing far back and results in many winners.

My shot is a very fast, low, hard return off the service. This "bullet" is often best executed before the serve has bounced. It tends to land behind the service box, and if you're unprepared often results in winners. This return requires a lot of precision to execute.

I hopped onto the stationary bike for a quick spin. It's time for a montage. I stayed at 95-110 rpm at difficulty level 10 (of 20) on the recumbent bike. I felt pretty good.

Squash with Laleh.

BHK lab visit to Basecamp. This was an impromptu casual visit, rather than the lab bonding activity previously. Minoru - who is about on the same level as I am, Chantal, Tom, and Michal all came. I climbed about ten top rope pitches and a similar number of boulder problems.

Snowshoeing expedition with Katie to Rouge National Urban Park. It snowed perhaps 20 cm in the past week, so we decided to go on a mild winter expedition. We stopped by the MEC in North York to rent snowshoes, then explored the trails at the urban park. The snowshoes were overkill, as the snow was not deep. We did see one other group of snowshoers, but most everyone else was just wearing shoes. Still, it was a fun expedition, and good practice under controlled conditions.

We brought about a liter of water and some pancakes to munch on.

Ghettotrack:
https://www.gmap-pedometer.com/?r=7443333

C • Rouge National Urban Park 2

I played eight games with Katie at Hart House and won the first six. Losing scores were:

K: 3 6 8 6 8 9
I: 8 5

I faded on the back bit, and in the aftermath, my right forearm is sore.

Running in the snow.